Negin Farsad’s new documentary, The Muslims Are Coming!, churns hilarity out of a not-so-funny subject: Islamophobia. The film follows Farsad, a TED Fellow, and a group fellow Muslim-American comedians (Dean Obeidallah, Aron Kader, Preacher Moss, Kareem Omary, Maysoon Zayid and Omar Elba) as they tour the United States and hold comedic interventions to show conservatives, liberals, big city-dwellers and small town stalwarts alike that, well, Muslims are Americans too. As they set up an “Ask a Muslim” booth and hold a game show called “Name That Religion,” they point out the stereotypes and fear that persist throughout the country. On the flipside, the film examines the problem of support from Muslim community for these comedians who curse regularly and play on cultural differences.

Farsad spent two years making the film, which was financed via Kickstarter and contains interviews with Jon Stewart, David Cross, Janeane Garofalo and Rachel Maddow. And this month it’ll open in six theaters: at the Greg Siskel Film Center in Chicago opening yesterday (Sept. 12), at the Grand Illusion Cinema in Seattle starting today (Sept. 13), at the Downtown Independent Theatre in Los Angeles starting Sept. 14, the Quad Cinema in New York City starting on Sept. 20, at the Somerville Theater in Boston on Sept. 27, and the Rutgers Cinema in New Brunswick, NJ, starting on Sept. 27. There will also be one-time screenings in Denver and Orange County, California. And at the end of the month, the film will be available on iTunes and assorted on-demand services.

Ever bowled with a Muslim? Why not? Negin Farsad wants to know. The comedian and filmmaker’s new documentary The Muslims Are Coming! follows a group of Muslim-American comedians as they travel through Middle America setting up street actions — Hug a Muslim, Bowl with a Muslim, Ask a Muslim — skewering stereotypes and turning Islamophobia […]

We are thrilled to announce the new class of Fellows for TED2015. These 21 game-changing thinkers represent 15 countries—including, for the first time in our program, Vietnam, Romania and Tunisia. They work across disciplines, at the forefront of their fields. They include a South African physicist using lasers to target HIV and cancer; a German/Moroccan […]